Inside the New York Yankees clubhouse with MLB.com beat writer Bryan Hoch.

And starting for the Yankees, No. 33, Brian Bruney

Now here’s the story with this one. Brian Bruney is starting for the Yankees instead of Ian Kennedy due to weather concerns. A Yankees spokesman said that Joe Girardi was
concerned about a looming rain storm that was projected to hit the Kauffman
Stadium area shortly after the scheduled 7:10 p.m. start time.

If the rain passed and play resumed, the Yankees said, Kennedy would then
pitch. Interesting move by Girardi, but what kind of message do you take from this if you’re Bruney?

UPDATE: And the parade of relievers continues on, as here’s Billy Traber. I guess Girardi figures if he can get four innings from his bullpen and then use Kennedy for four or five, that’d be good enough. But there’s a giant green blob on the radar and that might be a bit optimistic.

I agree with you 100%, Matt. How they didn’t break camp with a legit long man is beyond me. It’s an absolute necessity in today’s game. Here we are trying to limit the innings of 40% of our starting rotation, and we don’t have a guy that can spot start? Who’s making the decisions around here? Obviously, Girardi is not the guy that assembled the roster. Because if he did, he put the same one on the field that Torre would have. Can I expect a new “Scott Proctor” for Girardi? Is someone in the bullie going to have 100 appearances this season?

We all saw that this bullpen more or less was our weak spot. We have the resources to bolster it by trade or call-up, and we need to make something happen NOW.

Personally, I’m not surprised this season is basically a carbon copy of last season with the same roster basically. So it’s not a surprise they have the same problems. This team is still relying too much on a shaky bullpen as they did last season. They are second in the AL only to Boston in BP appearances with 27 and second only to Detroit with 35 IP by the pen. IF this keeps up at this pace this team will burn out its pen by the early half of the second half of the season as it did last season, and we all know how that ended up. This is definitely an area of concern for this team. It is going to have to stop making the same mistakes it made last season by relying on a shaky pen. It was a mistake for the Yanks to start the season without a legit long reliever. Without a doubt it is going to have to call one up fairly soon maybe Horne or Marquez (hopefully it won’t be Igawa or Rasner). It’s going to have to stop the bullpen by committee just to save it from burning out. It’s not like this pen has the talent to do that to begin with. IF it keeps up it may also have to rethink how it will limit innings for Hughes, Kennedy, and Chamberlain.

The only good thing about this is that it’s early in the season and no one is running away with the division so there’s still plenty of time to right the ship.

You’re right Chaz. The way I look at it is that if the Yankees were playing how they SHOULD be playing right now, they’d already have a 3-4 game lead on Boston. I think it would be so ironic if both Boston and New York struggled all year long with each other and kept saying “it’s ok, we’re still 2 ahead of Boston” and all of the sudden the year ends and Toronto’s on top. Heh, that’d be kinda funny.

Something good better happen today. As some of you may be able to tell. My Bombers have me in a foul mood this morning. Win tonight, for the love of God. I really don’t want to have to start drinking in April.

I love how this new format allows you to use scripts to format your post, and then promtly drops all your formatting when you click submit. It leaves a jumbled and illegible mess. Can we get the old site back? This new one SUCKS.

Frankly, I’m not going to tolerate this crap. I got an ear full of, “It’s early.”; and “The bats will come around.”; and “Injuries killed us.”; and “There’s alot of baseball left.”; and my favorite, “It’s only April.” last season.

It’s time to right the ship now. Here are the things that I am seeing that are costing us wins so far this season.:

Farnsworth is still a world class loser. No control, and no poise.
Cano is going to have to learn to be patient at the plate. Nothing pisses me off more than a guy who swings at the first pitch.
Wilson Betamit should not see playing time…ever. Who decided to send down Duncan to get Gonzalez when he can actually HIT? Brian Cashman is a bafoon!
Obviously, this batting order needs shaken up. Cano should not be hitting in the 6 hole. Giambi most definitely should not be hitting 5th. If they aren’t hitting, move others into those spots that are. Matsui should be hitting in that 5 hole. At least he is getting hits, and already has 2 dingers. Giambi should be hitting 8th while Cano bats 7th after Posada. Until Cano can work a count, he shouldn’t get a whiff of the 2 hole.
I thought that Girardi was agressive? Where are the hit-and-runs? Bunts? Stolen base attempts? Hell, LEAN INTO ONE AND GET YOUR CARCASS ON BASE!
We need to stop using the weather, injuries, age, or anything for that matter as excuses for LOSING. The other teams that are kicking our *** seem to be handling the same conditions JUST FINE. The Yankees need to check the logo on the uniform they are wearing, and then check behind their zipper to see if there is anyone on the squad who is packing a set. GET IT DONE, A-Holes! Stop embarrassing yourselves!

Blah, blah, blah. The Red Sox are under .500 too. So f-ing what? We should be using the time that they are struggling to get and early lead. There are many ways to win baseball games besides scoring 11 runs. Aside from that laugher with Tampon Bay, we have been “in” every game. Freaking MAKE something happen! Stop waiting for it to “come around”. Jeez. Out.

I suppose the conversation also has to show the NEGATIVES that continue and for me that includes: 1. hitting with RISP. No need to say more. 2. Also they GOTTA stop hitting those week ground balls with runners on. Are they leading the majors in GIDPs so far? 3. Giambi and Cano. Is this going to happen again? Heck, you don’t need to be a stud right now. Just don’t be completely worthless. 4. Farnsworth. I hate to pick on the guy, but 2 walks, 1 strikeout, and that awful awful 0-2 slider.

I wasn’t really too upset by the solo shot Farnsworth gave up. I mean stuff like that happens. Just say your bad words, kick some dirt, and get back to work. What KILLED me was that 0-2 pitch. That was just inexcusable. At the moment it kind of felt like the game. I was all excited that we were going to get through 5 innings with the bullpen and only give up 1 run, then bam.
I guess it’s STILL early enough that I’m still willing to take positives away from the game:

1. Bruney? Who the heck was that pitching?!

2. It was nice to see a few doubles by the Yankees. Maybe we can start stringing some of these hits together so they start making some runs.

3. Kennedy actually didn’t look all that bad to me. His line was nothing to write home about, but AT LEAST that first run should never have happened (thank you again Matsui). His control was way better and it even looked like his velocity was up. I’m anxious to see his next start.

We can try to blame Farnsworth all we want but a pitcher is going to give up runs. We’re averaging what 1.8 runs a game this season????? I think it’s a lot to expect your whole pitching staff to have sub-3.00 eras in the AL East (or anywhere in MLB).
Here’s how the whole game comes down, just from the 1 inning I watched –
1. Someone teach Melky how to run bases when the ball is hit in the infield.
2. Gonzales ABSOLUTELY bunts in that situation in the 7th.
3. Girardi ought to convene a kangaroo court to fine Cano EACH AND EVERY TIME he swings at the first pitch, wasting a double by Damon that would have scored Melky had Gonzales bunted and then there’d have only been two outs with Damon on 3rd and Abreu coming up.

We look like a carbon copy of the start of last season. The only difference? Mo has 3 saves already.

Ugggh. I won’t say that was a COMPLETE waste of time and money… but i guess I just did.

While I too was puzzled with the move by Girardi, I can now see WHY he made that choice.

We arrived about 6:40 ish… it was overcast but all was well. No sooner than the first pitch was thrown it was coming down and not just a sprinkle. I’d say a good half of the attendants made their way to the concourse in the first inning.

Now then… Aside from my disdain for Farnsworth, who AGAIN comes in an just ruins the efforts of those before him… I’m actually ticked off at the Royals or MLB for NOT calling this game early.

I’ll admit I don’t know exactly what criterion they use to call them but it damn sure must be $ related in all aspects.

It rained from pertinere the first pitch ’til we left in the sixth (hey we had a 2 1/2 hour drive to make too); and it was pathetic how that field looked. You could visibly see puddles at Short and at Third, not so much at First though.

My personal opinion is that the Royals and/or MLB deliberately did not call this game as they should’ve. I have to say that truly, we had at least 1/3 of the fans there tonight (not unlike any game KC hosts the Yankees). A good percentage of those people come from out of state. MLB would have to refund all tickets to people outside the 60 mile radius… which I can only presume to be some pretty big bucks for the Royales. No way this game should’ve been played. The forecast did not call for rain until 9pm or later (shows just what forecasters know).

I know this is part and parcel to the game in the month of April but it is a bit ridiculous; it doesn’t make any sense to me why southern teams aren’t hosting the entire month of April to the extent we can make that happen.

Just wait until Minnesota opens their new stadium without the roof they lobbied for. They’ll be playing doubles all summer.

I try very hard to support our boys, but I can’t stand Farnsworth, I just can’t. He was 0-2 to the batter then gave up an RBI on pitch 3. I even predicted it was coming to my godson. And as for the Homer… sheesh. The guy had to groove that ball so damn good to give the batter any chance of getting good wood on it, it was THAT pathetic. The wind was blowing in/left and hard… a good 15-25 mph. No one had even put a ball over our D’s head yet to that point, but Farnsworth manages just fine.

Even Greinke pitched well but we got a nice double from A-Rod that went for naught and had other chances go down in flames by the likes of Cano swinging at iffy pitches (1-1 count w/runners in scoring position).

I still think that it was ridiculous not to call the game; regardless. Girardi made a smart call, but MLB didn’t seem to agree with his call and then he had to pay for it by making our pen suffer and we STILL had to use Kennedy in a meaningless situation (and of course by then the game was official and we we’re on the wrong side of the score!)

Oh well… I still enjoyed going, but I think you can be sure that I’m not going to risk another April game in KC, FORGET IT. I’d much rather wait and catch them in Minnesota or take the chance that the Yanks actually play KC more than a home-home every year (like they have been for about the last ten years).

Yeah we do look like we did last year. Too soon to declare doomsday on the season but we’re not exactly getting anything to hang our hats on either (unless you count Abreu). I am not as optimistic as some of you; I think Toronto is a better club this year, they could well outdo us. The O’s seem to be the recipients of some lucky breaks and scheduling (although they did beat a supposedly tough M’s team).

I don’t see the Red Sox repeating… or even winning this division. Right now they’re no better off than we are, they’ve got Beckett and Dice-K, the rest may as well be named Farnsworth. Beckett is showing his human-ness and I think Dice-K will get hit late April or early May when the heat is up enough that players aren’t half-freezing. I know that both teams have to play in the same weather, but weather does affect older bodies differently than younger ones. So yes I do believe it can have an affect. Does it give them an excuse? Not really no, but I do think it can be a factor.

I can live with our youngins having rough outings. I can’t stand to see our organization continue to spout belief and faith in a guy that has done nothing, absolutely nothing to better this team. Farnsworth and Betemit are not benefitting this team at all (not that I have to tell any of you that). Salary is one thing, but production is another. I thought that was what MLB was all about. Who produces… Doesn’t matter what their salary is, if they can help they should. While yes, our BP has a lot of holes, are any of our other options any worse than Farnsworth? I see no improvement from this guy, the same inconsistent consistency, just like Betemit. How can our management keep coddling these egos at such a price?! Bottom line, if you’re in the Bigs, you shouldn’t need coddled. The guy has no command… so what if he can throw 96? If you groove a 96mph ball, MLB hitting can and will eventually catch up to it. When you have no command… well then you get Kyle Farnsworth. I’d take ten Mussina’s over one Farny any day.

Anyway, we have had a poor start, and injuries have hurt us, but we are tied with the Red Sox and only half a game back on Toronto. As long as we stay in touch with these two teams till we work out our issues we have a damn good chance at winning the AL East. I know it’s a bit early to be talking bout that, but I can’t help it. I’m a Yankee fan, spoiled by success.

The important thing is this season we have to continue the youth movement and not jump all over the team if we do badly. I can’t remember the last time our team will actually improve next seaon in terms of quality, rather than get worse.

Whoa whoa. They optioned DUNCAN?! I’m all for bring up Gonzalez. That’s fine, but Duncan? So let’s get this straight. They optioned down a guy who can play both outfield and infield, and can sub Giambi against a tough lefty, and can pinch hit late in a game, and is a decent hitter. Yet they keep a guy who can’t hit from either the left or the right side and can only play the infield. What is going on? My fiancee just asked if Betemit has mafia connections. Can anyone confirm or deny that?

Yup Matt. Sleepwalking. That’s the way to put it. It’s frustrating because I actually thought what Girardi did today was quite genius. However, the Yankees made it look suspect when the anemic offense and shoddy defense (Matsui’s GOTTA catch that one) reared their ugly heads once again. Enough GIDPs. Enough 1 or 2 pitch at bats. Let’s start working these pitchers again, getting into deep counts, and actually hitting balls HARD. That’s the Yankee offense I remember.

I’m not panicking, yet. I think it’s safe to say that Baltimore, KC, and Tampa won’t be able to keep it up. We see this kind of thing every season. What I would to see though, is for this team to break its string of slow starts at the beginning of every season, and actually show some life. I’m getting tired of these guys sleep walking through these games!!

Looks like the Red Sox are going through their own season pains right now as well, so let’s not get too panicky, because this seems like a league wide infection. What’s a little amazing to me is how bad teams like Baltimore, Kansas City, and Tampa Bay seem to be having success! Maybe we switched rosters or something. Detroit’s about to win their first game! Wholy crap!

So far this season has been a carbon copy of last season, with injuries, an inconsistent offense, an unsettled pitching situation, etc. How freaky is that? This team may need to bring up another pitcher soon, it’s just burning through its bullpen way too much already, again!!!!!!

What the hell is this? Kennedy being scratched from a start due to weather I can understand. What I do not understand is how the heck this bullpen is going to recover.
Call me faith-less or… whatever. I’m going to go with logic here and say that if this team keeps this up, they’ll be lucky to graze 90 in the win column. The pitchers are inconsistent, the offense is streaky. I can understand that Jeter and Posada are out, but this is no two man lineup. Where’s A-Rod, Giambi, Cano, Matsui, Damon, Abreu and co. at? Any ML team would be happy to have these guys penciled in their lineups, yet we have them all and they’re not performing. It’s still the first week of the season, and maybe the team is still in feel-around mode. Let’s hope we can get off to a better series in Boston and next week in general. So far, the club’s just not tputting it all together, but they’ll figure something out… hopefully.

In order to do that, the pitching is going to have to provide solid top three production ( Wang, Mussina?, Hughes ). The back end needs to stay consistent, but I think Pettitte belongs in the two spot, not Mussina. Kennedy is going tom have an adventurous season this year, because– well — it’s his first year with the big guys and he’s feeling the pressure. Hughes is ahead of him on the maturation curve, but even he will go out there throwin’ blind at times.

Next, the O. Where is the O? Wake up! Like I said, let’s hope theior just feeling their way around since it’s the first week, and m,aybe the put it all togther with a fresh start in Boston on Friday.

well rightly so. I remember feeling a bit uneasy about it myself at the time. You spend so much time hating on the Sox and Damon, then the next thing you know he’s high-fiving Jeet & Co in the Yankee clubhouse

well rightly so. I remember feeling a bit uneasy about it myself at the time. You spend so much time hating on the Sox and Damon, then the next thing you know he’s high-fiving Jeet & Co in the Yankee clubhouse

The weather dosn’t look good for tonight nor tomorrow… My guess is they didn’t want Kennedy to start up and then have to shut down and waste using him, or having him pitch a few innings and then wait during a delay, making him ineligible to pitch again…. This game looks like it’s gonna be delayed any second now.

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